


The Dame

by Swankyo0



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bucky Barnes Recovering, Fix-It of Sorts, M/M, Pining, Post-Civil War (Marvel), Pre-Slash, bucky pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 13:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17809013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Swankyo0/pseuds/Swankyo0
Summary: There were a lot of things Bucky didn’t expect about the future, but some things he could have predicted from the forties. That Stevie would be an idiot about love was a given in any century.





	The Dame

**Author's Note:**

> Based loosely on a prompt I saw a while ago asking for Steve being all torn up after CW instead of just Tony. There were other things in the prompt, but they are not in this story.

There were a lot of things Bucky didn’t expect about the future, but some things he could have predicted from the forties. Bucky wouldn’t have believed anyone if they tried to tell him that computers would fit into something as small as a phone. Or that gay people would be able to get married. Or that music would include things like heavy metal. And don’t get him started on the bananas. 

He did know, for certain, no question about it, that Stevie would be an idiot about love. Steve was the bravest person Bucky had ever met, and smart to boot, but in Jesus’ name, he could never take the reins in potential relationships. He didn’t fall often, but he fell hard and never did a damned thing about it.

So Bucky’s not surprised when Stevie starts moping the second they get to Wakanda. Of course Steve went and fell in love with someone. Of course he didn’t do anything about it. Of course they aren’t in Wakanda and Bucky can’t make Steve go _do something_ about it. Of god damned course.

And that’s all Bucky knew about the dame- she wasn’t coming to Wakanda. It was obvious in the way Steve would look out the windows like he could still see the States out there. The way Steve watched wistfully when Hawkeye’s family came to visit the first time. The way Steve’s shoulders would slump just slightly, not enough even for Natasha to notice, when Antman would play his ‘classic rock’. Bucky knew what all of that meant, but not who it was for. Which made his current mission a bit harder than he would like it to be.

First, he tried to go to the best source of information he had ever known, but the Widow said there wasn’t a special someone in Steve’s life. Hawkeye was there, at Natasha’s insistence, and he agreed. Natasha went so far as to say she couldn’t tell Steve was pining after anyone, much less who it might be. She just thought he was depressed because all his friends were dead.

For some reason that made Hawkeye laugh and Natasha slapped him on the back of the head in response. Bucky still wasn’t sure if he liked that man. Who laughs at his supposed friend over something like that?

Sam on the other hand, Bucky liked Sam. He would never admit it, and most people would never know it to hear them bickering, but Sam had been there for Stevie when Bucky couldn’t be and Bucky would always be grateful for that. When he asked Sam about any dames in Steve’s life, Sam just laughed and told Bucky to ask Steve himself. Bucky knew that would never work.

It was time for Plan B- Research. He started asking what would seem like harmless questions, questions that Stevie’s amnesiac post-brainwashed best friend from the past would be expected to ask. Who was there for Stevie when he first came back? After the battle against the _aliens trying to take over New York_? After Stevie’s solitary trip around the country? No one seemed to know. Steve never talked about the year after he woke up, and not long after Steve and Natasha were working together again Sam was in the picture.

Bucky decided that missing time, where no one seemed to know where Steve was or what he was doing, that is when Steve met The Dame. Steve must have spent quite a bit of time with her, too, because just about everything seemed to send his sulk deeper. Someone must know about the time Steve spent between his road trip and starting up with S.H.I.E.L.D. again. Someone.

The only people Stevie talked about, well, the only people still alive in this century, are the Avengers. The only Avenger Bucky hasn’t been able to talk to is Tony Stark. Bucky’s not sure if he’s ready to seek out Stark yet, even for Stevie’s sake, so he tries to send someone else.

Hawkeye said he wouldn’t call Stark until Stark called Steve. When Bucky asked why, Hawkeye said something about “mom and dad fighting”. Steve walked in on the end of that sentence and went completely rigid. When he asked what they were talking about, Bucky was quick to say “Nothing” and rush from the room.

Sam had barely met Stark, Antman had never met the man at all. There seemed to be some very bad blood between Stark and the witch girl. Vision expressed some kind of emotion when Bucky asked if he had spoken to Stark. Bucky didn’t know what kind of emotion, but it was definitely an emotion. Steve walked in just as Vision was floating through a wall and asked what had upset him. Without thinking, still confused about the interaction, Bucky replied that he had asked after Stark. Steve looked sharply at the wall where Vision had disappeared. 

“Has he heard from Tony?” Steve asked cautiously. Bucky just shook his head and Steve quickly made his excuses, obviously not wanting to stick around a pensive Bucky. 

Natasha did not show any emotion when Bucky asked if she would talk to Stark for him, she just blinked and then turned and left the room. 

Bucky understood that he’d caused a damn mess, but to hear Stevie talk, the Avengers were supposed to be _family_ and the bravest people in the world. Not a single one of them would man up and try to reach out to Stark? Bunch of lily livered cads is what they are. Well, Bucky decided, if no one else will do it he’ll just have to do it himself, ready or not.

Hard as it was, the decision to reach out to Strak proved to be easier than actually getting a hold of the man. Hawkeye gave up what should have been Stark’s personal cell phone number easily enough, but once Bucky figured out how to use the sleek rectangle that Shuri had given him and called the number he just got a message saying the number wasn’t in use. Bucky was pretty sure that was a lie, though. Stark had created a computer that could do just about anything, talk and think like a human and control anything that had a computer in it that _eventually became a person_. Bucky was pretty sure he could make his phone say it was disconnected. Besides, why would an American phone company use an Irish woman to record their messages?

After mustering up the courage to call Stark, successful or not, Bucky found himself mentally and emotionally exhausted. His shrink told him it wasn’t good for him to push his limits too far, and Bucky had no reason not to believe her. So he decided to take a break from his self-imposed mission for a while.

He spent his days hanging out with Stevie, which was just as frustrating as Bucky expected it to be. Stevie would never say he missed the kid Bucky used to be, but then, Bucky would never say he missed when Stevie was just a pipsqueak either. It was obvious at times, though, that Stevie _did_ miss the old Bucky. It always put Bucky in a foul mood to feel like he was letting Stevie down, _hurting_ Stevie just by being who he was now. It felt like another thing Hydra had taken from him. 

When he wasn’t with Steve, Bucky spent a lot of time ‘working on himself’, as his shrink would say. He kept a strict training regimen, tried to spend at least some time doing the breathing exercises he’d learned each day. He tried to find hobbies he liked and tried to convince himself that it would be ok, it was be _safe_ for him to wear the fancy new arm Shuri had made him. When he couldn’t, Stevie got a tight little crinkle between his eyebrows that made Bucky feel like Steve’s happiness was riding on his shoulders.

He learned as much about the present as he could from anyone who would be patient with him. He wasn’t as far behind the times as Steve had been, but he wasn’t quite as quick on the uptake as Stevie, either. The new technology he found in Shuri’s lab was fascinating and made him really feel like he was living in the future, but he had no idea how any of it worked. The only time Bucky heard Steve talk about Stark was right after Shuri finished his arm. Stevie took one look at the thing and his breath caught and his eyes grew wide and bright. His voice was a little rough and barley above a whisper as he breathed out “Tony would have loved this”. 

After about a month of sparing and game nights and ‘brunch dates’ with the team, Bucky was ready to try again. This time, he started with the direct route. Stevie wouldn’t tell him who he was pining after, but he just might give some hints without knowing it. Bucky asked him about what he did after he woke up. He let Steve go on about his trip around the country he had given his life for, smiled indulgently when Steve insisted Bucky just had to see the Grand Canyon. Bucky pushed him further, what about after that? Did he ever go back to Brooklyn?

Steve had not, but he did go to New York. Apparently, he spent time staying with Stark, nearly a year of it. Bucky _knew_ the man would have information. Stevie didn’t want to talk much about his time with Stark, which just confirmed it for Bucky- Stark _must_ know who Steve had gone doll dizzy over. It was time to try to reach out to Stark, again.

Since Stark was such a technology based guy, Bucky figured a technology based contact method might work best. His first attempt was to send an email to Stark’s official email address. He got a generic email back thanking him for reaching out and telling him that someone would get back to him as soon as possible. After two weeks Bucky got the feeling a follow up email wasn’t going to come.

He asked Clint, Natasha and Vision if there was an email address he could reach Stark at. They gave him three different emails, and all three returned an email immediately from something called “Mailer Daemon”. Finally, in a last ditch attempt to reach the man, Bucky called the Stark PR department and tried to ask for a way to reach the man “for an interview”. Like he expected, no one would give him the time of day.

For a couple days after that disaster Bucky joined Stevie in his sulking. Of course, Stevie _noticed_ and cornered him about it. Bucky had never been able to deny Stevie much of anything. It didn’t take long for Stevie to pull some information out of him. 

Bucky muttered something about trying to get a hold of Stark and hitting brick walls everywhere he turned. Steve’s eyes turned intense but he didn’t say anything and after a few moments Bucky continued. 

“I need to talk to him, Stevie. I just need to try to apologize.” Bucky was surprised to find it was the truth. After so much time trying to reach the man Bucky had managed to walk himself right into a burning need to talk to him. The air would never be clear, but Stark deserved an apology and Bucky found he _needed_ to give it.

“There’s one more thing to try,” Steve said, his face an expression of sheer determination, but his shoulders squared like a man ready for a court martial.

Steve brought Bucky back to his room and pulled an old phone out of a drawer in his unused desk. The type of phone actually looked familiar to Bucky, something he must have seen on a mission before. Steve flipped the cover open and stared at the screen. He pressed a few buttons, sighed and handed the phone to Bucky. The little green screen showed a single phone number and a highlighted “call”.

“Just press this button when you’re ready to place the call,” Steve said leaning over Bucky’s shoulder. As he pulled away, Steve sighed again before heading for the door. “I’ll give you some privacy.”

Once he was alone Bucky thumbed the call button on the phone. _Was_ he ready? He’d been working toward this moment for a couple months now, but now that it was here he realized he had no idea what he was going to say. Should he introduce himself and give Stark the chance to end the call if he wanted? Should he jump right into an apology? Should he ask about Stevie first? He had no idea what he should do.

Bucky took a steadying breath, realizing only then that his hands were shaking. Right. He wouldn’t get anywhere sitting here worrying about it. He pressed the button.

The phone rang once, twice, and then connected.

“Capcicle, how’re the wilds of Africa treating you?” Stark’s voice was almost fond, almost indulgent, as if he had been expecting the call, but slightly breathless. It reminded him of how Steve had reacted to the arm.

“Is Stevie in love with you?” Bucky had no idea where the thought had come from, but now that it was in his head it made so much sense. 

Steve _never_ talked about Stark. Even for having just had an all out blow out, Steve should have talked about him from before that. Bucky had heard from the others about Stark’s role in the battle for New York, but Steve never even mentioned that Stark had been there. The way he stiffened before fleeing every time he’d walked in on a conversation about Stark. The look on his face when he saw the arm for the first time. It made _so much damn sense_.

As thrown as Bucky was about the realization, Stark barely missed a beat. His voice was guarded but not in the least hesitant.

“Barnes. I suppose I should have expected this” Stark huffed a slight snort. “Well, not this exactly but you’ve been stalking every way the Rogues have to reach me. Even tried to bribe my PR agent I hear.”

“I didn’t try to bribe no one,” Bucky corrected. “Just maybe lied to them a little.” Stark actually laughed at that, but Bucky couldn’t tell if it was real or not. 

“Where are those 40’s morals I’ve heard so much about?” He prodded. “Lying to a dame of all things.”

“I’ve been a sniper, a spy, and an assassin,” Bucky drawled. “My morals may be a little skewed.”

“Yeah,” Stark agreed with a sigh. “I know a little about that myself.”

Silence fell over the phone, heavy with everything unsaid. Bucky pressed his free hand to is stomach, trying to ease the tightening he felt there. His breath stuttered and the phone shook for just a moment before he steadied himself.

“I’m sorry,” Bucky finally forced out. “I- I can’t bring them back, but I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah,” Stark breathed, voice thin and thready. “I know. I also know it wasn’t your fault.” Stark’s voice went hard and strong in an instant. “So stop being sorry and do something with all that shit they left you with. Stop _hiding_ in Wakanda and _do_ something. Or everything all of us have done means nothing and they fucking win again.”

Bucky let out a stuttering breath. He didn’t expect Stark to accept his apology in any way. This was so much more than he was ready for.

“So what? You want us to all come back and be on a team together? That’s not how it’s going to go, you have to know that.”

“I’m not in the field now. That shit we pulled?” Stark growled, but Bucky could tell he was just as angry at himself for what happened as anyone else. “That’s exactly why we need some oversight, some accountability. People could have died. Who gets justice for everyone who goes down because of us?”

“Yeah,” Bucky agreed. “But that’s not what they wanted. They just wanted someone to make an example out of. Where’s the justice in that? How am I supposed to do anything locked up somewhere for the next hundred years?”

“I know that!” Stark snapped. “I fucking know that, ok? I got it.” Another heavy sigh, this time from the other side of the phone. “Now. I know that now. Which is why I’m fixing it, like I said I would.” There was a rustling through the phone and Bucky could imagine Stark tossing down those exact papers now. “It would go a lot faster if I wasn’t doing it alone.”

And Bucky could see it, clear as day. Stark and Stevie sitting next to each other, pouring over sheet after sheet of legal mumbo jumbo. They’d argue, yeah, they’d disagree, but if they could just keep it together- that could work. Bucky could see them working.

Which brought him right back to the beginning of the conversation. Stevie and Stark. 

“You never answered my question.”

“Well, considering where we left things, I’m not sure it even matters.”

That was as good as a yes to Bucky. And it sounded like Stark felt the same. 

“He’s waiting for you to call. He’s been down right brooding while waiting, too.” Stark laughed out right at that. 

“God, yeah, he broods with the best of ‘em.”

“Call him.” Bucky urged. There was another prolonged pause, another slight sigh.

“Yeah. Maybe I will.”


End file.
